Interactive Design First Experience: Multiple participation in demand communication

In early September, I came to Sina Weibo UDC Department of interactive design positions internship. In nearly four months of study time, I have a deep understanding of the interactive design industry, recognizing the interaction of the designer's specific responsibilities. Given that most of the knowledge that was previously received came from books or web articles, the opportunity to participate in the project during the school is not much, therefore, I have done some summary of this internship: on the one hand, hope to spur themselves, in the future work of progress; On the other hand, I hope to help students who have just entered the interactive design industry to adapt to work faster, Learn more about interactive design.

Personally, for the designers who have just entered the interactive design industry, the effective methods in the work and learning process can be divided into the following four parts:

Part One: Know your own products

The details of a project, including how it starts, how it ends, what phases are in between, and in the process, how the interaction design work should be positioned and what role to play, should start with understanding the product. How do you know your product? There are several ways to do this:

1. Multiple identities, multiple role use products

such as micro-bar, as a novice to Demo Micro Bar, get the guidance is the most basic, but also the most comprehensive, the account registration time of 3-6 months of user identity using the product, the guidance and copywriting tips on the difference with the novice, involving the right to operate the hint layer of the difference is more obvious, Bar Master and expert identity of the operation tips and ordinary users get guidance and hints in the content and form are different, using a variety of roles to use the same product, help us to quickly understand the product.

2. Carding product logic, understanding product structure, macroscopic understanding of product internal logic and the relationship between products and products

The mature product content is many, the level is rich, the new user is easy in the use, the Isolation Understanding single page structure and the component detail, lacks to the product whole, the thorough ponder. The complete carding product structure, is advantageous to us the overall understanding and grasps the product, prepares to propose the optimization plan.

Micro-Blog Help Center product structure Comb

When contacting Weibo to help the product, I combed the site structure and product logic of the Help center products and questioned the importance of the page hierarchy of the Service wizard-"The service guide product has a simpler structure, less content, and can be considered to reduce the level of the product", and perhaps the view is not necessarily accurate, This example also only shows that by combing the structure of the product, the novice is able to quickly grasp the product logic, macroscopic understanding of seemingly complex products.

3. Summary of Experience deficiencies

One of the characteristics of Internet products is the rapid iteration, each phase of the product line is more or less because of decision-making, time and other reasons there is a lack of experience. After the previous two steps, we have a better understanding of the product itself, in the participation of the page questions to check, but also to avoid the lack of understanding of some of the questions, to accurately find the product experience deficiencies. In addition, the product on the line to check the problem should follow the corresponding interactive design principles: Consistency, simplicity, fluency, timely feedback. Take "experience consistency" as an example: good consistency of products can reduce the cost of learning and cultivate good habits of users. On the one hand, performance is consistent with the internal experience of the product, the component forms in the system are consistent with the other component forms, establishing the trust between the product and the user, on the other hand, the performance is consistent between the product and the product, extends the consistent experience to many independent systems, follows the common design standard, avoids the user discomfort or unfamiliar.

Through the above 3 points, we can more smoothly understand the product positioning and framework logic, to find the optimal point, and then complete the product experience. By properly summarizing and summarizing, we can also organize a complete experience report to prepare two iterations of the product.

Part II: the need for more participation in communication

Unlike product managers who ask for demand, interactive designers are concerned with the ease of use, fluency, and operating experience of the product. From the requirements document, the product side is more like the concept of product design from a macro point of view, and interactive designers, from more details, to enhance the product user experience. Two different starting points determine that only product managers and interaction designers better cooperation, friendly communication, can accurately transform the product strategy into product prototypes, so as to provide accurate reference to the work behind. Therefore, the need for communication is an interactive designer a necessary skill, as a newcomer in the communication needs should pay attention to the following points:

1. Actively participate in the project (related to their own) needs of communication and discussion. For interns, communication at work should begin with understanding the needs and ensure consistency with product managers ' understanding of requirements in order to avoid repeated revisions of prototype and visual solutions and increase workload.

2. Must have its own judgement on demand. In addition to the need to have their own professional understanding of the needs, but also to help the product manager to clarify ideas, identify different roles, scenarios, and accurately comb the information structure and task flow. For example, when the demand for product strategy or marketing solution conflicts with the user experience, the designer has the responsibility to propose a better design plan.

3. Each communication must be effective and feasible. Demand communication and solution communication, the divergence of opinions must be resolved in a timely manner, which requires both sides to understand the real purpose of the demand, grasp the essence of the problem of communication-demand and user experience, and finally give the corresponding solution.

Part Three: Give the design plan of "complete"

The reason why the "integrity", did not put forward "excellent" is because the output of excellent interactive design is a long process, it requires us to constantly accumulate design theory, continuous contact with excellent design cases, and constantly participate in the actual project and complete the basic needs. As a new intern, give a complete plan design, is to put forward the foundation of excellent design plan, cultivate good habits, have the effect of twice the effort.

1. Design to solve the needs of the starting point

As a novice in the interactive design, after receiving the demand and making the plan, add a number of functions for their own solutions, especially when the competitor has not yet done excited, but neglected the nature of the demand, designed not only to solve the demand, but also to demand itself brought unnecessary cumbersome operation, as you sell the microwave to others, What other people want to buy is actually a hot steamed bun. Also, there's always a phenomenon--what you think is a good feature, put in a product, and it might be a bad user experience.

2. Develop a good habit of correctly writing interactive document specifications

A complete interactive document should include: The name of the document, the contents of the document, the presentation and delivery of the document. The contents of the document mainly include: Update records, site map, key task flow, wireframe and description copy, interactive specification five parts. The accurate writing of interactive documents strengthens our ability to think about design, facilitates the need side to quickly understand prototypes and participate in discussions, and facilitates others to view project progress and final output results.

Interactive Document Description Specification

3. Attention to detail, mainly refers to the interaction level of detail and wireframe drawing level details

For example, at the interaction level, when the mouse is placed on a variety of hover states on the text, whether the various states match the appropriate scene, where the cue is to use the background mask-type shells, or bubble-type reminder layer, the button's copy should be canceled, or with the end of the mouse suspension appears the effect of feedback, Whether it should be clicked, and so on, is the interactive detail that needs to be weighed. Online block diagram level, line spacing is how large, the size is unified, secondary link color is clearly distinguished between the module spacing is reasonable, border color depth, border thickness is consistent and so on, are embodied in the designer's logical thinking rigorous place. It is not difficult to see that the formation of a good habit of attention to detail is the basis for the promotion of interactive skills!

Button Hover State

4. Maintain a unified experience of use

We in the design of the requirements, we need to pay attention to the consistency of online product experience, such as the initial understanding of their products generally, the same brand products in the experience of differentiation must be effective control, to avoid the occurrence of heterogeneous. Of course, demand is not just about optimizing existing products, such as new features, adjust the product design strategy, and then combine the demand for innovation, we also need to pay attention to the design process component style and the existing product experience consistency, such as: Hint layer, button form, right module style, etc. should try to maintain consistent.

Of course, with the design of the ability to improve, we can think through their own, the most appropriate, most efficient way to produce a reasonable, complete, or even excellent design solutions.

Part IV: Follow up on some aspects of product demand

A qualified interaction designer, need to cooperate with Product manager to follow up some parts of product requirements: in the input phase of the requirements, designers can work with users to understand the characteristics of users and the use of behavior, in the confirmation phase of demand, designers can proactively ask questions, the need for a reasonable remodeling; in the design phase of requirements, The design plan will be modified or perfected by different functional designers, the interaction designer needs to follow up the program communication and design, maintain the technical communicating with the vision, front end, structural engineer, ensure the solution is feasible, and also make sure that the scheme is in the best use experience, so that the scheme is actually restored; In addition, after the product is online, Designers also need to participate in the online product testing, ready for the next iteration ...

Conclusion

Internship time is not long, think of their internship in the process through some detours, summed up these content, hope to be able to better restrain, guide their own design, but also look forward to the future to make a complete, excellent program to solve more practical problems.